Railway-marker.



J. F. HADDOCK.

RAILWAY MARKER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 19, 1915.

Patented Feb. 22, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1- THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0, WASHINGTON. D c.

J. F. HADDOCK.

RAILWAY MARKER.

APPLICATI'ON FILED FEB. 19. 1915.

1,172,523. Patented Feb. 22,1915:

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AiL'WAY-MARKER.

Specificationbf Letters Patent.

Patented F b. 22-, 1916.

Application fi'led iFebruary 19:, 191-5. Seri'alNo; 9,385.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOSEPH F. HADDOGK, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city of St. Louis and State of lVIi'ssouri, have invented new and useful Improvements in Railway-Markers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to railway lanterns of the type commonly denominated markers, and has for its general object to provide means whereby an ordinary oil lantern of this description may be electrically lighted.

The character of lantern to which my invention relates is adapted to show two colors of light, red and green; and is provided with four bulls-eyes, three of which are of green glass, and one of red.

In practice a marker is placed on each corner at the rear end ofthe last car to extend beyond the sides thereof; and is normally set to show a green light to the engineer, a red light at the rear, and a green light at either side. Each marker is also rotatably mounted so that it maybe readily turned to display green lights at the front,

rear and side when the train moves on to a siding.

My invention embodies means for permitting the lantern to be turned in the usual way, for the purpose indicated above, with out breaking the electrical con-tact.-

My invention also embodies means whereby the lantern may be either automatically lighted by the act of mounting it'on the bracket of the car; or through the medium of a conductor leadingfrom a lamp socket, or other electrical station, on the car, and having contact members for establishing electrical connection with the electric lamps mounted in the lantern.

The invention also embodies various novel constructions and combinations of parts, all

of which will be clearlyset forth inthe detailed description of the following.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view, partly in section and partly in elevation, of a marker constructed according to my invention; Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig.1; Fig. 3 is a view in elevation of the lower portion of my improved marker and of a section of the corner post of a car,

illustrating the manner of mounting the marker on a bracket provided on said corner post to establish electrical connection with contact-members provided on said bracket; Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line 11 of Fig. 1, certain parts being broken'away to better illustrate the construction; Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. 4; and Fig. 7 is a view in elevation on areduced scale illustrating the marker mounted on a dead bracket, and in a detached view a conductor provided with contact-members for establishing electrical connection with the marker.

Referring now to these drawings, the numeral 8 indicates, generally, a marker which, except for my added improvements, is of the usual or any preferred construction, and comprises a casing 9 having mounted therein bulPs eye's- 1O, 11, 1-2 and 13, of which the bulls-e'ye 10 can be considered as being red. One of the bullseyes, say 13, is mounted on-a slidable section 1% which is movable to give access to' the interior of the casing. Within the casing there is provided a false bottom 15 adapted to support an oil lamp 16. The bottom 15' is provided, around its periphery, with a hollow annular ridge 17 which pro vides a recess in the bottom for receiving the lamp 16. Mounted on the ridge 17 opposite the bnlls eyes 10,- 11- and 12,; respectively, and communic'at ing with the annu-lar' space 18 provided by said ridge, are hollow posts 19, on the top of each of which is mounted an electric lamp 520. It will be understood, of course, that the top of the posts 19' are provided with sockets for removably receiving the lamps 20. The conductors 2l'leading'from such sockets are carried through the posts 19' and connected to two main conductors located in the recesses 18. The conductors 22 are held in position in the recesses 18 by an insulating plate 23 secured in the casing of the lantern under the false bottom 15. The conductors 22 are also insulated, and at a convenient point are extended through openings provided in the wall of the ridge 18 and the casing 9, as indicated in Fig. 6, and have their bared end portions connected to binding screws 23 mounted, respectively, in the ends of contact-rails 24 which partly encircle the bottom portion of the marker.

The rails 24 are mounted on a strip of insulating material 25 by means of screws, rivets or the like, 26, and a similar strip of insulating material 27 is interposed between the strip'25 and the casing 9, and said strips of insulating material are secured to the casing 9, as by means 01 screws 28. An insulating stop-block 29 (Fig. 4) mounted on the end of the strip 25 by means of screws 30 abuts against the binding screws 23, and a similar insulating stop-block 31 secured by screws 32 abuts against the opposite ends of the contact-rails 24. The bottom of the marker is grooved to provide a seat for a ring 33, which ring carries a bracket-arm 34 having a head 35.

The numeral 36 indicates a support mounted on the corner post 37 of the car, and provided with a locking-groove to receive the head 35 of the bracket-arm 34.

The parts just described are of the usual construction, and when the marker is mounted on the support 36 it may be freely turned in the ring 33.

In order to provide for automatically lighting the marker as it is placed in position on the support 36 I mount beneath the support 36 a bracket 38 on which is mounted an insulating plate 39.

The numeral 40 indicates contact-members having twin spring-tongues 41, said contactmembers being secured near opposite ends of the plate 39 by means of screws 42 passing upward through said plate and screwing into the bottom of said contact-members. One screw of each contact-member acts as a binding-post to which is connected a conductor 43, 44, respectively, which in practice would pass through a small opening in the corner post and connect with the source of electricity carried by the train.

Mounted on opposite sides of the bracket arm 34 are two insulating-blocks 45, on each of which is mounted a plate 46 provided with an integral knife-edge contact-member 47 projecting at right angles to the plate 46 and to the insulating-block 45, each of the plates 46 having an integral portion at its top indicated by 48, which extends parallel with the top of the insulatingblock 45 and terminates in a spring contact-finger, one of said contact-fingers, indicated by 49, being bent upwardly to engage the under side of the upper contact-rail 24, and the other of said contact-fingers, indicated by 50, being bent downwardly to engage the top side of the lower contact-rail 24. The portions 48 of the plates 46 are connected and covered by a block of insulating material 51.

It will now be seen that when the marker, constructed as described, is lowered into position on the support 36 the contact-members 47 will enter between the twin tongues 41 to form electrical contact therewith, which thereby establishes connection through the contact-fingers 49, 50, and rails 24 with the.

the source of electricity the construction illustrated in Fig. 7 will be employed. This arrangement differs from the construction previously described only in the fact, that no contact-members are provided in connection with. the support 36. In such case I employ an ordinary flexible conductor 52, the respective wires of which are electrically con.- nected with twin tongue contact-members 53 mounted on an insulating-block 54 carried by a bridge-piece 55, around which the conductor 52 may be wound, or to which it may be suitably connected in any preferred way to carry the contact device as a whole. The opposite end of the conductor 52 will carry a plug 56 of the usual description for insertion in a socket. When the marker is in position on the support 36 the contact-members 53 are inserted over the contact-members 47 from above, and thus establish the electrical connection with the lamps of the marker as will be understood.

Theoil lamp 16 is carried in the lantern so that if for any reason the source of electricity should fail, or the electrical contact should be broken, said oil lamp could be at once lighted, and thus the danger of the train traveling without its tail lights be avoided.

Many advantages incident to theuse of electric markers might be enumerated, but i as most of these will be apparent to those skilled in the art, such as those of greater security, by obviating the necessity of handling, or carrying oil, and of economy and cleanliness, I think it necessary in this connection to emphasize only the fact that the use of my electric marker will enable a much brighter and more penetrating light to be employed, which is of great advantage in the case of a heavy rain, snow or fog.

I claim:

1. A device of the character'described, comprising a lantern having a plurality of differently colored bulls-eyes adapted to be turned to given positions for the purpose of signal or warning, electric lamps operatively supported in the lantern and having conductors electrically connected therewith and extending part way around the lantern, a bracket-member rotatably mounted upon the lantern and provided with supporting means, and free electric contact-devices mounted on said bracket-member and in electrical and slidable engagement with said conductors.

2. A device of the character described, comprising a lantern having a plurality of differently colored bulls-eyes adapted to be turned to given positions for the purpose of signal or warning, contact-devices on the ex, terior of the lantern electrically connected with said lamps, a bracket-member rotatably mounted upon the lantern and provided with supporting means, and a plurality of insulated contact-members mounted on said bracket-member, one set of said contactmembers being free and affording means of connection with a source of current supply when the lamp is supported in position on the car, and the other having slidable engagement with the contact-devices of said lantern and electrical connection with said free contact-members.

3. A device of the character described, comprising a bracket-member having insulated contact-members mounted thereon and provided with supporting means, a railway lantern having a plurality of difierently colored bulls-eyes adapted to be turned to given positions for the purpose of signal or warning rotatably mounted in said bracketmember, and having electric lamps mounted therein, a pair of insulated contact-rails provided on the exterior of the lantern, conductors leading from said lamps to the respective contact-rails, and means slidably engaging said contact-rails and electrically connected with said contact-members.

i. A railway marker comprising a portable bracket-member having fixed insulated contact-members mounted thereon and provided with supporting means, a lantern rotatably mounted in said bracket-member having electrical lamps mounted therein and provided with differently colored bulls-eyes adapted to be turned to given positions for the purpose of signal or warning, conductors leading from said lamps to the exterior of the lantern, and contact-devices carried, respectively, by said lantern and said contact-members and having corresponding slidable engagement, the contactdevices carried by the lantern being insulated therefrom and from each other and electrically connected with respective con ductors of said lamps, and the other contact devices being electrically connected with said contact-members.

A device of the character described, comprising a. lantern having electric lamps mounted therein and provided with a plurality of differently colored bulls-eyes adapted to be turned to given positions for the purpose of signal or warning, a pair of insulated contact-rails mounted on the lanporting means tern, conductors leading from said lamps to theexterior of the lantern and to said rails, a. portable bracket-member rotatably supporting the lantern and provided with supporting means, insulated contact-members mounted on said bracket-member, contactarms extending from the contact-members and engaging the respective contact-rails, a support. on the car for receiving the supof said bracket-member whereby to support the lantern on the car, and means on the car for forming electrical connection with said contact-members.

6. A device of the character described, comprising a railway oil lantern provided with differently colored bulls-eyes adapted to be turned to given positions for the purpose of signal or warning, electric lamps operatively supported in the lantern and having conductors electrically connected therewith, a portable bracketmember carried by and adapted to rotatably support said lantern, and having supporting means, and a plurality of insulated contact-members carried by saidbracket-member, one set of said contact-members being free, and affording means of connection with a source of current supply when the lamp is supported in position on the car, and the other set having electrical connection with said lamp conductors.

7. A railway marker having electric lamps mounted therein, a pair of insulated contact-rails mounted on the marker, conductors leading from said lamps to the exterior of the marker and to said rails, a bracket-member adapted to rotatably support said marker, a pair of contact-members mounted on and projecting from opposite sides of said bracket-member and insulated therefrom, contact-arms extending from the respective contact-members and engaging the respective contact-rails, a support mounted on a car for engaging said bracket-member, and a pair of insulated contact-devices mounted on the car adjacent to said support and connected with a source of electricity carried by the car and adapted to establish electrical engagement with said contactmembers when said bracket-member is placed in engagement with said support.

8. A railway marker having electric lamps mounted therein, a pair of insulated contact-rails mounted on the exterior of the marker, conductors leading from said lamps and connected to the respective contactrails, a bracket-member adapted to rotatably support said marker, a pair of contact-members extending from opposite sides of said bracket-member and insulated therefrom, contact-arms extending from the respective contact-members and slidably engaging the respective contact-rails, a support on a car for engaging said bracket-member, a pair of insulated twin tongue contact devices mounted on the car adjacent to said support In testimony whereof, I have hereunto and positioned When sald bracket-member set my hand in. presence of two subscrlbing is placed in engagement wlth said support Witnesses.

to receive and form electrical engagement JOSEPH F. HADDOCK. with said contact-members, and electric con- Witnesses:

cluctors leading from said contact-devices to STELLA HILL,

2L source of electricity on the car. 4 G. A. PENNINGTON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

